SPOT PLB: First Impressions

Finally got my SPOT PLB delivered this afternoon. After reading some preliminary reviews from sources that I trust, I decided that it would make sense to add this tool to my quiver. I spend a lot of time out in the backcountry where cell phone signal goes in and out throughout the day, so the ability to "check in" without calling out SAR makes this a very appealing device.

First off the vitals:
Dimensions: 4.38 X 2.75 X 1.5”
Weight with batteries: 210 g
I have not tested the claim of whether it floats :-)

Size wise its basically the same length and depth as my Garmin GPS. Construction appears to be very solid, the unit has a heavy, well built feel to it. I had been worried about the lack of a cover but the four buttons(help, on/off, ok/check, and 911) are small and reaccessed to minimize any accidental activation. Also helping to prevent a false alarm is the device requiring that for a 911 or help alert to be sent, the corresponding button needs to be held down for 2 seconds before a message will transmit. The device is not pre-enabled out of the box, you have to log on to the SPOT website and register to get the device to send messages.

Registration was quick and easy, the system allows you to send both text messages and e-mails to your "Spot team" and customize both your OK and Help messages and who you would like to receive alerts. You can add and drop contacts at any time. For an additional $50 fee, you can sign up for SPOTcasting, which allows people to follow your progress for up to 24 hours.

After registration it was time to give the device a quick run through, so what better way then to walk outside and attempt to check in.

Conditions were dark, windy, and overcast, just the kind of conditions that you hope you're not stuck out in. So I trotted out of my house, powered up the SPOT and hit the "OK" button. The lights flashed as they were supposed to and nothing happened, they just kept blinking, and blinking, and blinking. I kept waiting for the lights to turn solid to indicate that a message was sent, but the lights kept blinking. Finally the light went solid green(message sent), and then continued blinking. So I shut down the unit and went inside to check if the message had been received, sure enough, I had e-mail notification showing my exact location. I trudged back outside for further testing, powered up the unit and hit OK again. Once again I was treated to what felt like an eternity of flashing lights, with no sent messages, it was at this point I began worrying that I had purchased a very useless gadget, I hadn't even tried it under tree cover and it wasn't quickly sending messages. I began thinking how miserable it would be to be in a real emergency and just watch the two green lights flash, knowing that nothing was being sent.

It was at this point that I walked inside to scan the user manual, which upon reading it(novel concept) told me that it could take upwards of 4 minutes to get a location fix and send a message and that SPOT would attempt to send multiple messages for 20 minutes. Back out I went, this time grabbing a warm jacket, I booted up the Spot and hit the OK button, this time I also hit my stopwatch. It must have been the pressure because within 51 seconds I had successfully transmitted an OK message, I left the Spot on in transmit mode and it sent three more messages at 8:45, 12:25, and 18:53. Its worth noting that somehow the Spot manages to delete redundant messages and only sends one e-mail notification. Feeling more confident and having a better grasp of how the device functioned I proceeded to change location and send a "Help" signal(Help signals only go to your Spot team, not to the 911 dispatch) this could be very useful in the event of a car malfunction, or other non life threatening situation. Sure enough within 5 minutes, the Spot confirmed message sent.

I then moved into the woods, to get a better understanding of how well the Spot would function when under tree cover. I got my first alternating flash which meant the message could not be sent, but a slight move to the right gave me a solid light message sent indicator. I began to see the wisdom in allowing for a 20 minute, multiple message cycle which would offer the best chance of a message getting through, even in thicker tree cover. I tried a few more locations and managed to get messages sent within 4-8 minutes of pressing the OK button.
Once back at the computer I could get an overview of where I had been with Google Maps.

To make a quick summary, I'm honestly not entirely as blown away with the device as I though I would be. I envisioned a much faster transmitting device, but its clear that I had an unreal ideas and expectations of how the product worked. I also was not testing it in the way I would be using it in the field. For example if I was truly sending an OK alert, I'd probably either would be moving, in which case having a 20 minute window to find a clearing to send a message is a nice touch. Or I'd be stopped for lunch, again in which case I'm not going to care if it takes 4-6 minutes to send a quick check in message. This is not an instant communication device and as soon as I realized that, I began to understand the product better.

Clearly the SPOT does work as a locater beacon, and the ability to send an OK vs Help message is reason enough to buy it. Its well built and ergonomically well designed, and it should make for a nice addition to my backcountry pack I'm going to give it a far more thorough run through in the usage and terrain that I bought it for sometime in the coming days, so look for an update soon.